After Zach Newman stepped down from the helm of the Cowboys’ baseball program, Canyon High School has named Mike Young as the new head coach for the upcoming 2027 spring season, according to Canyon High School Assistant Principal Mark Overdevest.
“Coach Young brings extensive baseball knowledge, valuable coaching experience, and a strong commitment to student-athlete development,” according to a statement from Overdevest sent to The Signal. “His leadership, work ethic and enthusiasm make him an outstanding choice to lead the Canyon Cowboys into the future.”
Young, who served as the freshman team’s head coach and as a varsity assistant last season, takes on the role as the skipper for the upcoming 2027 season after spending the past three years with the program’s lower levels.
“Over the past several years, he has been an integral part of the program, serving as a coach at the lower levels and as a varsity assistant coach,” Overdevest’s statement reads. “His dedication to developing student-athletes and his commitment to the values of Canyon baseball have made a lasting impact on the program.”
Young’s career includes 35 years of coaching experience with stints at Crespi Carmelite High School, Cleveland High School, and Birmingham High School, including 25 years working alongside former MLB all-star Reggie Smith, according to Young.
“This is one of the great honors of my coaching life. I have spent 35 years watching what actually makes players better, and it is the work between the games,” Young said in a statement sent to The Signal. “Our players will be developed as whole athletes, their arms will be protected, and their grades will matter.”
Young takes over as manager after the Cowboys finished the 2026 season 9-18 overall and winless in Foothill League play for the second-consecutive year.
The Cowboys still eye their first playoff appearance since the 2013 season and will look to do so next year with a young team after graduating 11 seniors from last season.
“We are a Division 7 school that competes above our division, and our goal is simple: make the playoffs,” Young said. “I am grateful to the Canyon administration for their trust, and to our families for the biggest trust, their kids.”
Young knows taking the Cowboys to the top step in the Foothill League will be a tough challenge and is looking to build the program from the ground up, establishing a culture to grow student-athletes who represent Canyon baseball.
“A lot of the kids, the ones that are juniors now, I had them as freshman, so they have an idea of how I do things,” Young said in an interview with The Signal. “The parents are great, they’re supportive, we have a great booster program, great administration. I think it’s just up to me to put it into place and show that Canyon can play baseball with the best of them.”
